Another year has come and gone and it’s an opportunity to reflect on all we have accomplished together. In 2021, Carleton’s website continued to be a key source of information about COVID-19, but our most read stories highlight the remarkable achievements within our community. From impactful research and innovation to student supports and alumni success, there is so much to be proud of.
Beyond the pandemic, Carleton’s growth and progress remained on track. In September, the Nicol Building, the new home of the Sprott School of Business opened its doors to the community and became the base for our cross-faculty Innovation Hub.
CU@Kanata launched at Hub350, a new ecosystem in Kanata North where industry, finance and academic partners will collaborate and connect. We proudly became the first university to receive two important certifications relating to our commitment to wellness in the workplace: The Order of Excellence in Healthy Workplace and Platinum level in Mental Health at Work.
We moved forward with important updates to our Student Mental Health Framework and launching a broad and inclusive consultation process towards the next iteration of the Sexual Violence Policy. Additionally, we established a new Centre for Community Engagement, which will serve as a focal point for strategically aligning community engagement across the university.
We’ve been covering the top stories at Carleton and more at newsroom.carleton.ca and carleton.ca. Join us in reflecting on some of the great moments of the past year and discover the university’s Top 10 most read stories of 2021.
Carleton University Joins Ottawa’s High-Tech Hub
In October, Carleton opened CU@Kanata, a purpose-built innovation space at Kanata North’s Hub350, a new ecosystem in Canada’s largest technology park where industry, finance and academic partners will collaborate and connect. The initiative will help expand research and educational partnerships.
Carleton Ranks High in Maclean’s 2022 University Ranking
Carleton’s excellence in research, student awards and Indigenous initiatives was recognized in Maclean’s 2022 university rankings. We proudly maintained our overall ranking in the comprehensive category in Canada. Carleton’s leadership in research was recognized with a jump to No. 2 in funding in the social sciences and humanities and we maintained a No. 5 position in science and medical funding. In the area of student satisfaction, Carleton’s wealth of teaching talent was recognized as it secured the No. 4 spot for Course Instructors and rose to the No. 5 spot for Promoting Indigenous Visibility.
Carleton Grad Soars Into Out of This World Tech at SpaceX
A graduate of Carleton’s Bachelor of Engineering in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering program, Andrew Rader, is now a mission manager for SpaceX, a California-based space manufacturing and transportation company that launches missions for commercial clients and government agencies such as NASA.
Hands-on Architecture: Investigating Sustainable Building Materials
Architecture master’s students are working on developing sustainable building materials with the potential to reduce our carbon footprint. Robin Papp is looking at hemp biomass, water and lime to create building blocks for insulation and structural materials. Sinan Husic is combining cement, sand, fibres, plasticizers, and water to 3D print thin slabs of ultra-high-performance concrete.
Carleton Researchers Working with City of Ottawa to Provide Early Warnings of COVID-19 Community Spread
Since the early days of the pandemic, researchers at Carleton University have been providing the City of Ottawa and local public health officials with updates on virus levels in different areas of the city by testing wastewater for the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19. Experts in environmental engineering and microbiology have collaborated to help officials anticipate trends by identifying increased levels of COVID-19 before infected people begin presenting themselves at testing sites.
The Joyce Family Foundation Supports Indigenous Student Success
In November, we were proud to announce The Joyce Family Foundation’s $2.5-million endowment, which will support bursaries for Indigenous students at Carleton. Carleton’s matching investment will also support bursaries, mentorship, Indigenous programming, student recruitment and create conditions for Indigenous student success. It is an important step towards meeting the objectives of Kinàmàgawin—meaning Learning Together—Carleton’s ambitious Indigenous Initiatives Strategy that was approved in 2020.
Where The Dinosaurs Were: A Saskatchewan Field Trip
Mat Roloson, an Earth Sciences master’s student at Carleton University, went on an adventure to solve a paleontological mystery that dates back more than 66 million years. When pandemic research rules made it impossible for Roloson and his supervisor to fly to Saskatchewan last summer to search for old Triceratops digs, they spent three days driving west and embarked on a treasure hunt for dinosaur quarries.
Carleton hosts U SPORTS Men’s Soccer National Championships
Photo by U SPORTS
This fall, Carleton University hosted the 2021 U Sports Men’s Soccer National Championship on our home turf. The Ravens walked away as silver medalists after putting up a solid effort against The Universite de Montreal Carabins.
Cross-Faculty Innovation Hub Opens in Nicol Building
Carleton’s new Innovation Hub aims to foster a problem-solving mindset in every student in the university. The hub, which is based in the Nicol Building, the new home of the Sprott School of Business, is open to ideas and participants from all faculties. Rooted in research, education and outreach, projects could revolve around finding a social solution to a technological problem, or a technological response to a social issue. The Innovation Hub’s mandate is to provide the tools and support required to nurture bold and imaginative ideas generated by students in the arts and social sciences alongside their peers from engineering, science and business.
Carleton Industrial Design Grads Win Top Prize in Accessible Design Competition
A pair of recent graduates from Carleton University’s Industrial Design program won a top prize in this year’s Innovative Designs for Accessibility (IDeA) student competition. Mandy Hui and Liana Meere developed a labelling system and app to help people with visual impairments select, sort and wash clothing. Their concept, Closet, uses labels with QR codes to convey the size and colour of a garment as well as care instructions.
Thursday, December 23, 2021 in University Communications
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